The Internet is used to conduct “electronic commerce” because it facilitates electronic communications between vendors and purchasers. The Internet comprises a vast number of computers and computer networks that are interconnected through communication channels. The term “electronic commerce” refers generally to commercial transactions that are at least partially conducted using the computer systems of the parties to the transactions. A purchaser, for example, can use a personal computer to connect via the Internet to a vendor's computer. The purchaser can then interact with the vendor's computer to conduct the transaction. Although many of the commercial transactions that are performed today could be performed via electronic commerce, the acceptance and wide-spread use of electronic commerce depends, in large part, upon the ease-of-use of conducting such electronic commerce and the ability to profitably market merchandise. If electronic commerce can be easily conducted, then even novice computer users will be more likely to engage in electronic commerce. Additionally, if merchants and vendors can sell items for the highest price that the market will bear, then more merchants are likely to use electronic commerce. Therefore, it is important to develop techniques that facilitate conducting electronic commerce.
The Internet facilitates conducting electronic commerce, in part, because it uses standardized techniques for exchanging information. Many standards have been established for exchanging information over the Internet, such as electronic mail, Gopher, and the World Wide Web (“WWW”). The WWW service allows a server computer system (i.e., web server or web site) to send graphical web pages of information to a remote client computer system. The remote client computer system can then display the web pages. Each resource (e.g., computer or web page) of the WWW is uniquely identifiable by a Uniform Resource Locator (“URL”). To view a specific web page, a client computer system specifies a particular URL for a specific web page and a request (e.g., a HyperText Transfer Protocol (“HTTP”) request). The request is forwarded to the web server that supports that web page. When that web server receives the request, it sends the requested web page to the client computer system. When the client computer system receives that web page, it typically displays the web page using a special purpose application program (e.g., a “browser”) that effectuates the requesting of web pages and the displaying of web pages.
Web pages are generally defined using HyperText Markup Language (“HTML”). HTML provides a standard set of tags that define how a web page is to be displayed. An HTML document, for example, contains various tags that control the text display, graphics, controls, and other features. The HTML document may also contain URLs of other web pages that are available on that server computer system or other server computer systems. When a user indicates to the browser to display a web page, the browser sends a request to the server computer system to transfer to the client computer system an HTML document that defines the web page. When the requested HTML document is received by the client computer system, the browser displays a web page as defined by the HTML document.
The WWW portion of the Internet is especially useful for conducting electronic commerce. Many web servers have been developed through which vendors can advertise and sell products. The products can include items that can be delivered electronically to the purchaser over the Internet (e.g., music). The products can also include other items (e.g., books, clothes and electronics equipment) that can be delivered through conventional distribution channels (e.g., common carriers). A vendor server computer system may provide an electronic version of a catalogue that lists the items that are available for purchase. A potential buyer may browse through the catalogue using a browser, and then the buyer can select various items that are to be purchased. When such a user has completed selecting the items to be purchased, the vendor server computer system typically prompts the user for information to complete the transaction. This purchaser-specific order information may include the purchaser's name, payment information (e.g., credit card number), and a shipping address. The vendor server computer system typically confirms the order by sending a confirming web page and/or an electronic mail message to the client computer system, and then the vendor server system schedules the shipment of the items.
Web servers for the WWW can be expensive to maintain and operate. As such, one computer service is a web host that leases processing and memory capacity of a “host server” to resellers, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), and businesses. Resellers typically lease a large amount of processing and memory capacity from the web host, and they resell their “portion” of the host server to ISPs or businesses for their web sites. Many resellers generally configure and reconfigure their portion of the host server so that they can efficiently deliver their services to their customers. For example, HOSTPRO is a web host that leases services on a host server to multiple users or resellers. The resellers can configure their portion of the host server via the WWW. HOSTPRO, more specifically, provides users and resellers with a control window that has a plurality of graphical interfaces that the users and resellers can use to configure a “virtual server service” provided by the host server.
One drawback of providing a web host service to multiple users and resellers is that it is costly and time-consuming to provide an accurate demonstration of the virtual server service to prospective customers. In a typical application, a web host generally requires potential resellers to establish an active trial account for demonstrating the virtual server service, and the web host may even charge the prospective users and resellers for the trial accounts. After establishing a trial account, a prospective user or reseller can use a control window to experience configuring the virtual server service via a graphical interface. By establishing an active trial account, a prospective customer uses the computer resources and generates data that is saved by the server. The web host must accordingly monitor, identify and remove any features that the prospective customers saved in their trial accounts. Providing such trial accounts for prospective customers accordingly consumes a significant amount of the computer resources at the host server and requires a significant amount of administration. In some instances, the host server may even inadvertently delete or alter information in an active customer account. As a result, demonstrating the control window for configuring a virtual server service using active trial accounts is inefficient and can result in inadvertently altering valuable information for active customer accounts.